KARACHI: Boasting the successes and statistics regarding the Rangers-led Karachi operation, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lt Gen Asim Bajwa said on Friday that more work needed to be done to completely rid the metropolis of violence and terrorism.
Addressing a press conference here, Lt Gen Bajwa said the Karachi operation was commenced in Sept 2013 at a time when criminality, targeted killing and kidnapping for ransom were at their peak in the city.
Lt Gen Bajwa detailed the outcomes of Karachi operation in a presentation.—DawnNews During the operation, he said, over 12,000 people were arrested in more than 7,000 raids conducted by Rangers, out of which 6,000 people were handed over to police.
The biggest terrorist groups operating in Karachi are Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent and Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) which conducted attacks in the city in collusion with the Tehreek-i-Taliban (TTP) Pakistan, Bajwa said.
He said all the terror outfits are trying to consolidate and conduct attacks in the city. A pool of terrorists utilised by all the terrorist groups, including 97 militants, was arrested in intelligence-based operations. Some 26 of these terrorists carried head money, he said.
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The same group had planned and executed the Kamra base attack, attack on ISI base in Sukkur, Karachi Airport attack, Karachi jail break attempt and assassination of Karachi's top cop Chaudhry Aslam.
Al Qaeda in the Sub continent leader Mussannah is the mastermind and arranges financing for the group's operations in Karachi. He is number two to the leader who is present in Afghanistan, the ISPR spokesman said.
Another facilitator Huzaifa is being searched for and "we believe he is in Afghanistan".
'People unintentionally facilitate terrorists' The number of terror incidents in Karachi have cut down drastically, Bajwa said, but appealed to the citizens at large to be aware of their surroundings "so as not to be come a tool or accessory to these terror bids".
Target killing in Karachi declined by 70 per cent while an 85pc decrease in incidents of extortion and 90pc decrease in kidnapping for ransom cases was witnessed.
As part of Zarb-i-Azb, he said, "all terrorist sanctuaries in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) have been wiped all with the exception of a few pockets."
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